People who Misuse Pluto and Saturn—Don’t be Fooled by Scare Tactics!

I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had an underlying truth. – Umberto Eco

In trying to understand and counteract the growing climate of fear in the world around us, and especially among those astrology lovers who are having strong transits by both Pluto and Saturn, I first turn to the technique of mixing and matching keywords. Though in no way comprehensive, it’s useful as a starting place for grasping the meaning of an astrological aspect. Let’s see what pairing phrases for these two planets can teach us.

Some keywords for Saturn: fear, anxiety, constriction, authority

Some keywords for Pluto: control, power, wealth

Here are some truths I see reflected in that combination:

Fear disempowers us.

Anyone who frightens us badly enough can control us.

When someone frightens you, ask yourself their motive.

Money, control and power are the three biggest motives for fearmongers.

To regain your power, let go of fear.

Whenever a controlling individual–or a social institution–plays on your fears, remember that fear is a potent tool for disempowerment. At some level, whether conscious or not, people who try to intimidate us want to control us. They want us to give over to them something we value—money, possessions, our will, or even some part of our free will.

What Kinds of People Might Be Using Scare Tactics on Us?

If we’re alert to it, we can see these time-honored tactics used at every level from the schoolyard bully to the battering spouse to the absolute dictators of history.

Politicians play on our fears in order to get us to vote for them. The media continually play up threats to security of one kind or another with sensationalized news items and blaring commercials. They want to keep you riveted in front of the television set, watching their newscasts and buying their sponsors’ products. FEAR SELLS.

We even see fear-mongering, sorry to say, in those in the New Age movement who make dire predictions around the Mayan Calendar and 2012. FEAR SELLS.

Might there by any wild stretch of the imagination be a certain number of astrologers who use the widespread fears about current and coming astrological conditions to build up their importance to clients? Could be. FEAR SELLS.

When you encounter anyone of any religious, spiritual, professional, or political persuasion whatsoever who is peddling fear, recall the earlier formula:

Fear disempowers us.

Anyone who frightens us badly enough can control us.

When someone frightens you, ask yourself their motive.

Money, control and power are the three biggest motives for fearmongers.

To regain your power, let go of fear.

Ways of Fighting Fear that DON’T Work

The climate of fear that is so pervasive just now causes too many of us to freeze up and be ineffective in handling the very real challenges we all face. As more and more people are paralyzed with anxiety, the main solution promoted by physicians and billions of dollars in advertising is to lull ourselves with anti-anxiety medications, antidepressants, and sleeping pills. Multitudes of others self-medicate to handle the overwhelming stresses of our times by drinking, smoking, toking, or a vast variety of addictive pursuits.

While prescription medications and addictions do lessen the emotional upset and relieve stress temporarily, they don’t change the fundamental fact that the system isn’t working any longer.

Overused, they can cause the general public to ignore the need to make some deep level changes that, at the very least, will be inconvenient and at most will require great sacrifices from all of us. For far too many, pills just make it easier to ignore the crisis we’re in rather than to take productive action.

So What Can We Do?

Productive action is the only way out of this complex situation. NO magic bullets—we’re fresh out of them. I, for sure, don’t have any and I wouldn’t trust anyone who claimed they did.

My hints for managing Pluto and Saturn transits are in no way, shape or form a magic bullet, just a suggested method for arriving at actions that may prove useful and a collection of tools that might help achieve them. You’ re invited to use any parts of it that speak to you at the moment and leave the rest behind. Come back to it at any point during this year-long aspect when it seems relevant. If you think of others who might find it helpful, feel free to pass the link along.

All we can realistically do is to pursue wise, well-planned endeavors that entail plenty of sweat equity and a long, long view of consequences. Actions like that over time can transform individual lives. If enough individual lives are altered for the better, it can make a difference in our world.

Does it feel like a miracle is what it would take to get through this? Whenever I am deeply upset, I dust off my dog-eared copy of A Course in Miracles. It’s the text for a life path, a discipline in which I am but a dilettante, but it’s the only thing that stops my tumultuous emotional storms at times like that. I open it at random, and the exact answer I need is right there at my fingertips.

Often, however, all I really need to do is to recite to myself a verse from the first chapter that I’ve held to myself as a talisman for a couple of decades. Maybe it will help you, too:

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Responses

Donna, once again I have to say ‘thank you.’ I have found you at just the right time of my life. I have been thinking exactly what you wrote today. Michael Creighton echoes many of your thoughts in his book State of Fear. Look for whom has to gain what by reacting to the fear, he says. And as you speak of the fear, power, wealth combo, I can’t help but think of the Catholic church. Don’t mean to ‘pick’ on them, because much organized religion is the same, but the Vatican is such a quintessential symbol of wealth for something that is supposed to represent a figure renown for rennuncing material goods. I foresee much good to come from the tranformation going on in our society: where life is more localized, smaller, more connected, a back-to-the-earth, growing one’s own food, working for oneself in a passionate endeavor, etc. just to name a few. Anyway, once again, a great read to start my day!

Years ago, I said to myself that organized religion will become a thing of the past but not in my lifetime. Now I’m beginning to wonder if it will happen in my lifetime. I used to say that astrology should be taught in school but I felt that was definitely not in my lifetime. I’m beginning to wonder about that, too! This is truly an exciting time! Extraordinary, and joyous, changes are coming our way. We must do our best not to fear. As my father said,” this, too, shall pass”, and pass it shall, into better things.

Yes! Exactly, Donna. Sorry to impose upon you stuff that you’ve already handled. (grin) A lot of the time I’m just testing myself because I know you will gently correct me if I’m wrong. You are a very valued friend…

Hi, Larry, I don’t mind questioning comments at all, as they often stimulate productive exchanges. As a matter of fact, I’ve been going through the comment section the past couple of days to pull out some of the best of them for a series of posts. There are quite a lot of them–I’m only on page 12 of 54 pages of comments total, but there are some gems. Donna

Some fears are there for our protection…reality based, not neurosis. What is useful is to figure out why we’re afraid and then tackle any deficits or potential potholes on our paths so we can move forward. Donna

“Nothing real can be threatened.”
I strongly beg to differ… I live in the Pacific Northwest where locally and area wide, there is a real, palpable, laboratory proven use of chemicals to sterilize a temperate rain forest. I write this as my 100-year-old home is pelleted with a variety of chemicals including those chemicals regulated by the EPA and state of Washington Chemical Compliance office. All to get rid of the wildlife around us including internationally protecting migrating species of birds essential for the apple orchards of the region. My own garden has been multiple herbicided by folks who do not like gardens, wildlife, or just want my property at a time when no bank would loan anyone to buy my home. You say nothing real can be threatened? Forget global warming and overpopulation pressures, just take a good hard look at the cruelty of the American citizen against their own neighbors not even for financial gain….just to feel powerful against a larger force we call nature. I am living a tragedy that only time will tell what personal price I will pay for in disease…but think about the impact on the earth and generations of humans to come….surely, this is real and it is threatened by plutonian forces of evil. Who would shoot a stellar jay or a crow or a hummingbird??? Susan

Ah, so you were born with Pluto in Scorpio. Is that your only planet in Scorpio? I’ve seen charts of people your age with a stellium in that sign. I just found the information (not the birth time) of figure skating champion Charlie White, and he has Sun, Venus, Mercury, and Pluto in Scorpio. During the time Saturn has been there, he’s won several championships, including world. I’m pulling for him and his dance partner to win Olympic gold. So you see, Saturn can have some good results there. Hard work that pays off. Donna Cunningham

I loved this article. (Running to my copy of a “Course in Miracles”). I need to put some rationality back in my mind. I’ve been really uneasy and stressed out. But I’m a very hopeful person…that Light in the end of the tunnel is always there 😉

donna some difficult aspects are written in to the chart,its all princarnationally agreed,for soul experience,we have been raping and pillaging mother earth as if theres no tomorrow,what will pluto conjunct Saturn in Capricorn bring.we seem to have no reverence for the life force ,on every level.we need to stop breeding low grade physicality and start breeding higher mindedness of sane actions. any one who picks on anyone else ,needs to look deep inside themselves and see the very thing they hate lurking within. face our shadow.vampires don’t have a shadow.